Soaps
by Classy Abigail
Summary: It's the last day of filming for Yuugi, the star of a popular television drama. When he realizes that he's fallen for his costar, though, things start to get a little unprofessional. Puzzleshipping.


"Even the sky is crying for me," Yuugi murmured, frown twisting as if he wanted to laugh at the cliché of the situation. He dropped to his knees in a mud puddle, the force of his fall causing the water to splash all over him. The dirty water soaked his clothes, hair, and face, but he paid his sorry appearance no mind. His mascara began to run as he raised his face skyward and cried loudly, "What did I do to deserve this?" His muffled sobs turned into haunting wails of utter grief and abject loneliness that tore from his throat with a force that was surprising for someone so tiny. He pounded the ground with his fists, causing more water to splash all over him. "Come back to me, my love!" he pleaded desperately into the darkness, reaching a slender hand out in front of him and looking off into the distance with a miserable, broken expression. After a heart-wrenching moment where the only sounds came from the rain falling softly all around him, he let his hand fall to his side. "Why?" he whispered, lowering his head as his shoulders shook with repressed sobs.

"Cut!" the director yelled in a choked voice, as if he was fighting back tears of his own. The set erupted into awed applause for Yuugi as the lights came up and the rain machine was shut off with an audible banging noise. "Take ten, everyone!"

Yuugi picked himself up off of the ground and walked over to where his assistant was holding a towel and a glass of water for him. "Thank you," he said gratefully, voice sounding a little scratchy, as the towel was draped over his shoulders and the glass was pressed into his hands. He grabbed hold of a corner of the fluffy white fabric and blotted at his face to get some of the fake rain off.

"Excellent performance, Mr. Mutou," the assistant told him, practically gushing over the smaller man, "I've never seen anyone look so miserable and heartbroken before! It gave me the shivers!"

Yuugi nodded and smiled, taking a sip of his water to ease his sore throat. He thanked his lucky stars that he wouldn't have to do that particular scene again. The screaming wasn't exactly easy on his vocal chords.

As he pressed through the crowd of set workers on his way to his trailer, it seemed that everyone wanted to congratulate him on his performance. He fielded comments and questions and accepted compliments for what seemed like forever before he finally made it to the enormous trailer with "Yuugi Mutou" written on the nameplate. With a weary sigh, he let himself in before locking the door behind him and heading towards the bathroom to clean off his face and reapply his make-up.

A knock at the door interrupted his routine just as he was drawing perfect, solid lines around his eyes in eyeliner for his next scene. "Just a minute!" he called somewhat snappishly, capping his eye pencil and pushing himself out of his stool in front of his mirror. He eyed his appearance in said mirror for a few seconds before shrugging and leaving. Whoever wanted to talk to him would just have to deal with the current state of his face.

Yuugi swung the door open with a soft smile. "Hey, Yami," he greeted happily, glad it was his fellow actor rather than some other star-struck set assistant ready to sing his praises. "What can I do for you?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded.

"Well, if you're offering," Yami teased in his throaty baritone with a wicked grin on his face. At Yuugi's half-annoyed, half-amused "be serious", he smiled honestly. "Right, I suppose I'll have to save that for the cameras. I was just wondering if I could come in and we could talk," he said, phrasing his statement as more of a question as he fixed Yuugi with an imploring gaze.

"Sure, but only if you don't mind watching me do my make-up," Yuugi replied quickly, and he left Yami to let himself in as he headed back to his bathroom without so much as another glance in the other's direction. Yami's eyes made his knees weak.

Yuugi got as close to the mirror as possible as he finished up his eyeliner, not wanting to make a single mistake. For his next scene, he was supposed to be in mourning of his relationship. That meant one thing to Yuugi: black, dramatic make-up. He was wearing twice the normal amount of eyeliner, the black rings making him look almost like a raccoon, in his opinion, and the mascara would only make it worse. The goal was to look as gothic as possible, and Yuugi was glad he had been given complete control of his own make-up for this particular scene; he had gone through a goth phase in middle school, so it was going to be nostalgic for him.

Yami leaned against the far wall and observed his co-star. "You're lucky you get to do your own make-up, Yuugi," he said somewhat wistfully.

Yuugi snorted as he carefully selected the right tube of mascara. Dramatic length and volume was a necessity, and it had to be in the darkest shade he had. A seldom used kind for him, to be sure. "No way in hell I'd let those so-called artists anywhere near my face. They have no idea how to do their job without hurting whoever they're working on."

"Don't I know it," Yami agreed and raised his eyes to the ceiling, "I can't count how many times I've been stabbed with a mascara brush."

"I'm assuming that this isn't what you wanted to talk about," Yuugi commented lightly as he curled his lashes carefully, checking the clock on his wall to ensure that he still had time.

"I realize that you've probably heard this a lot already," Yami began, examining his fingernails in what Yuugi assumed was merely a subconscious gesture borne of vanity, "But you really did a spectacular job with the last scene. I was absolutely enchanted by your acting."

Yuugi froze momentarily while his mind processed Yami's words. Enchanting. Him. He mentally shook himself out of his stupor, focusing on getting the most out of his mascara application. "You really think so?" he asked, going for a sincere answer instead of his typical response to praise. He wouldn't ever brush off Yami. "That means a lot to me, coming from you."

"I swear I wanted to ruin it by running back onto the set and comforting you," he half-joked, referring to their relationship in the television drama, "My character is such an ass for doing that to your character."

"It all works out in the end, though," Yuugi replied, moving on to coat his face in foundation so that he would appear pale and unhealthy, "We'll get our happily ever after." He looked at Yami through the mirror and smiled flirtatiously at him for a second before he caught hold of his emotions and busily returned to working on his complexion.

Yami didn't appear to have missed his look, though, because a strange emotion flashed in his eyes and he opened his mouth to speak. No words came out, though. He cleared his throat, a sound that went straight through Yuugi, before he tried again. "In all seriousness, though, your acting was amazing, and I'm really upset that we'll be shooting our last scene together tomorrow."

It doesn't have to be! Yuugi's mind screamed at him to say the words, but his mouth felt dry from the look Yami had fixed him with. It was similar to the look that his character used to give Yuugi's character back when they were still in love. This time, though, it wasn't Ryuuki and Shindou in the room together; it was Yami and Yuugi.

Yuugi turned to face Yami, a look of shock and hope written on his face underneath his layers of make-up. Yami was looking back at him with an intensity and determination that seemed to fill the room. Right there, in that moment, Yuugi realized what he had known all along. Not only was his character in love with Yami's, but he was in love with Yami, too.

The director's voice, amplified by his megaphone, cut through the tension in the room. "Places, everyone!"

"Shit," Yami swore, looking down at what he was wearing. "I'm not ready yet. We'll continue this-"

"Later," Yuugi finished for him, turning back to his mirror with his eyes squeezed shut tightly. He willed Yami to leave him alone with all of his mind as his heart screamed for him to stay forever. The door slammed shut, however, and Yuugi was alone again. He stood and donned his black jeans, white t-shirt, red scarf, and oversized gray hoodie that was his costume for the scene before rushing out of his trailer.

Once back on set, he slipped back into his mask of professionalism and headed over to the make-up and costume artists so that they could look him over and adjust anything. The cosmetics people simply gave his work an appreciative nod, whereas the costume designers tugged and pulled at his outfit until it suited them. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Yami approaching, and he hurried over to his chair next to the director in order to receive any last-minute suggestions as to the interpretation of the script.

The director was a young man with harsh features and a stern demeanor, but he was very gentle and patient when dealing with his actors. He looked over Yuugi's appearance approvingly before addressing him. "Alright, Yuugi, for this scene, I'm sure you're aware of what it entails, but I'd like to go over it with you quickly just once more," he said as he pulled out his copy of the script to reference.

Yuugi peered over the director's shoulder, nodding as he did so.

"For this scene, you and Yami meet in a little café in the city where you both are still living," he said, flipping through the handwritten pages and glancing at a few words here and there, "You are excited but unsure about him because you are still in love with him, but you remember very clearly all of the pain he caused you."

"Right," Yuugi agreed with a nod.

"I want an earnest, heartfelt delivery of your confession lines," the director told him, "You really need to sell it because you're trying to convince Yami of your love. But don't be over-enthusiastic with it. As I said before, you have to keep the fear of further rejection in mind."

"Is that all?" Yuugi asked politely, eyeing the set with approval. The scenery crew always did a spectacular job with the sets. It really looked like a little, obscure café that might be found in the less-travelled parts of a big city. The extras were already taking their places, eagerly awaiting the start of the scene. There was a young looking cashier with a mop of curly, black hair and a few modestly dressed college girls with laptops settling themselves into one of the booths. A businessman with a briefcase was standing next to the cashier, and the two were chatting nervously. New people, Yuugi decided with an absent-minded click of his tongue.

"Do us proud, kid," the director said, "Go send Yami over here and take your place."

Yuugi slid down from his chair and walked over to where the make-up artists were putting their final touches on Yami. When the actor turned to look at him, Yuugi couldn't help the little thrill that went through him. Funny how he had hugged, kissed, and even been mostly naked on camera with this man, and yet, after their little exchange in Yuugi's trailer, he couldn't even look him in the eye without suppressing a blush. "The director wants you then," he said quickly before turning tail and heading towards his position in the scene.

Before he knew it, the director was cuing the lights and the cameras. Yuugi took a deep breath, shifted his position in his chair, and adopted a sort of half-depressed, half-bored look on his face. He tipped his cup of coffee towards his lips just as the director yelled action.

After swallowing the cold coffee that really wasn't very good, Yuugi twisted the cup around in his hands a few times and looked resolutely at the table. He looked at the watch on his wrist, and his eyes went wide. "Oh, no," he said, sounding worried, "If I don't get a move on, I'll be late for work! I suppose that's what I get for waiting around here." He raised his eyes and looked around the café with a fond look on his face. "This café was where I first met him," he said quietly, eyes welling up with tears. He blinked them away with a twisted frown, lip quivering as he visibly fought back the urge to cry. "No. No more. I can't dwell here."

Just as he stood up to leave, Yami walked in through the door to the little café. Yuugi sucked in a breath. "Ryuuki," he whispered.

Yami turned and stared directly into his eyes, surprise showing on his face. He reached up to touch the purple scarf that was knotted at the base of his neck, and Yuugi mimicked his action. "You're still wearing my scarf," he remarked, a spark of hope in his tone and eyes as he walked slowly towards Yami.

"You're still wearing mine," Yami replied with an unmistakable harshness to his tone.

Yuugi flinched and wrapped his arms around himself. With a shake of his head, Yami reached out to him. "I'm sorry, Shindou. I didn't mean for it to come out like that. It's," he paused, hesitating on his next words, "Good to see you again."

"I wish I could say the same," Yuugi replied frostily and moved to walk past him.

Yami stepped into his path, and Yuugi bumped into his chest with a shocked noise. He backed up a few paces, clutching himself again, and Yami shook his head again. "No, no, no. Please, Shindou. I'm sorry. Can we talk?" he asked pleadingly, begging with his eyes as well as his voice.

Yuugi tilted his head as if to mull this over. Yami looked cute when he wore that expression. He mentally berated himself for letting his own thoughts take over and promptly adopted a confused, but still accusing, look. "How come we have to talk only when you want to? I've wanted to talk to you for weeks now, Ryuuki."

Yami sighed with a hand to his forehead as if he was frustrated with himself. "I know, and I'm sorry. Let's talk over there."

Yuugi obediently walked over to where he had indicated and sat down at the table. It was a quiet section of the café where there wasn't anyone else milling about. He fidgeted with his cup as Yami moved to sit across from him. "What did you want to talk about?" he asked, keeping his head down.

"Please look at me, Shindou," Yami pleaded.

Yuugi looked up shyly and watched Yami's face morph into one of shock. "What did you do to your face?" he asked, reaching his hand up to brush his fingers against Yuugi's pale cheek.

"What's it to you?" Yuugi demanded, recoiling back from his touch, "You didn't seem to have any qualms about leaving me alone in the pouring rain, so why care about me at all, Ryuuki?"

The look in Yami's eyes was so hollow and broken that Yuugi's next line caught in his throat. He blanked completely, unable to tear his gaze from Yami's face. Panic gripped his heart. He'd never dropped a line on-screen before. What was going on? Yami and he had done this kind of thing millions of times before. Hell, they'd done so much more than this. So why now?

"Cut!" the director yelled, and it was as if someone had flipped a switch. Yami's expression was now a confused one, the extras were all staring at him, and the camera crew was at least trying not to openly gawk. "Mutou, what's going on with you?" the director asked a bit more sharply than necessary.

"I dropped my line," Yuugi replied, feeling like a child being scolded by his father. Shame tinted his cheeks a pale pink.

"You've never dropped a line before!" the director continued in a protesting tone, no doubt enraged that his star actor had messed up, "Why now?"

His face reddened. Forget ashamed; he was angry. How dare the director berate him publicly like this, embarrassing him in front of everyone? "I just forgot, okay? It was one line!" Yuugi fired back, storming off of the set. Everyone's eyes followed him as he pushed past the camera crew. "God, I'm not allowed to make one little mistake?" he fumed loudly, stomping over to his trailer.

"And just where are you going?" the director hollered at his retreating form, face turning red with rage.

"Get off of my back!" Yuugi cried, voice breaking on his last word as he rushed up the few stairs to the door of his trailer, wrenched it open, and slammed it shut again. The lock slid into place with a click that seemed almost ominous, and Yuugi slid to the floor against the door, biting the inside of his cheek so that he wouldn't ruin all of the hard work he had put into doing his face by crying it all off.

What had just happened? He'd never been so unprofessional, gotten so angry, in his entire life. It was one thing to drop a line, admit your mistake, and reshoot the scene. However, what Yuugi had just done was just as rude as it was childish. With a groan, he dug his fingernails into the thin carpet on the floor, wishing for all the world that he could release his emotions with a good, unscripted cry. He was going to lose his job for sure. As soon as this last episode of the television drama was filmed, his contract would be up, and he would bet all of his savings that he wouldn't be getting a new one. Sure, he was a pretty face and a marginally talented actor, but big time directors like the one that Yuugi was working with now wouldn't suffer temper tantrums from brats like him.

A tentative knock at his door propelled Yuugi headlong out of his bitter musings. "Who is it?" Yuugi asked weakly, hoping with all of his heart that it was Yami and not the director come to fire him on the spot.

"It's Yami. Can I come in?"

Yuugi's stomach did a flip. He scrambled up and twisted the lock on the door roughly, dragging it open and holding it that way only long enough for Yami to step through before slamming it and relocking it; he was still pissed, after all.

Yami fixed him with an odd look. "What's going on, Yuugi?"

Yuugi sighed, slumping down on the plushy couch that was pushed up against the opposite wall of the little trailer. Being careful not to smudge his face, he braced his elbows on his knees and cupped his face in his hands. "I can't believe I just did that. Dropping a line was bad enough, but mouthing off to the director was just plain unprofessional. I am obviously a sixteen year old girl."

Yami sat down beside him and hesitantly put his large, warm hand on Yuugi's back, right in between his shoulder blades. He began to rub small circles against the thick hoodie, and Yuugi would have been lying if he had said that it didn't feel amazing. "You know," Yami began quietly, "I don't think it was so bad. You've been perfect at every shoot since this series began. Everybody messes up eventually."

Yuugi looked up at his fellow actor with a skeptical frown. "I messed up royally, Yami. I let my mind wander during the scene before you'd even entered. My expressions were forced. It was going to have to be reshot, anyway."

"Why did you drop your line?" Yami asked quizzically, looking thoughtful. "We've been rehearsing these lines for ages now. I would've thought," he trailed off, searching Yuugi's eyes for any trace of anger with an apologetic frown, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to insult you or anything."

"No, no," Yuugi replied dryly, staring down at his hands, "Please go on."

Yami looked hesitant, but he plowed on regardless. "It's just that we've been going over this stuff for weeks, and you've always done it perfectly. Was it something I did?"

Yuugi's head whipped up at that. "What? No! It definitely wasn't you, Yami! I just," he began, but Yuugi realized belatedly that, in truth, it was at least partly Yami's fault. If only their little moment in his trailer before the scene hadn't taken place, then he wouldn't have realized that he was hopelessly, desperately in love with his co-star. Of course, it wasn't right for Yuugi to blame Yami for the feelings he had for the man. No, whatever had happened between them, Yuugi was the one who had gone and screwed up his head, and Yuugi was the one who had screwed up the scene. Never mind that Yami wasn't exactly helping, the fact was that Yuugi had no one to blame but himself for this.

"You're being quiet, which you only do when you're thinking really hard about something," Yami observed, nerves making his voice quiver slightly, "I'll ask again; was it something I did, Yuugi?"

"Unless you count making me fall in love with you as something you did, then no, you haven't done anything, Yami," Yuugi finally replied with a soft smile, returning to his earlier face-in-hands position to make it easier to say what he had to say. He had found the problem; all he had to do was surrender to it. "During the scene, I couldn't help but think of our earlier conversation and how you make me feel. The reason I dropped the line is because I was letting my feelings get in the way of my performance.

What followed could only be described as the single, tensest, most amazing moment of Yuugi's entire life. Yami's hand stilled, pressed flat against his back, and his entire body froze as if he had been shocked. Yuugi could feel the other man holding his breath. He slowly lifted his head and bravely looked into Yami's eyes. What he saw there took his breath away; Yami's eyes were slightly watery, and he looked relieved, hopeful, grateful, and awestruck all at the same time. Time seemed to freeze for them as they sat there on Yuugi's little couch, staring into each other's eyes and drinking in all of the long-suppressed emotions contained within. Then, Yami's lips curled into a dazzling grin that showed off almost every one of his perfectly whitened teeth, and he ran his fingertips along Yuugi's jaw line with a sort of reverence that turned Yuugi's insides to mush and made him feel as if he was the only person in the world that mattered at the moment. He swallowed audibly, and the corners of his mouth turned up into a shy smile at what he was thinking, about to say. "This is the part where you tell me how you feel, you know."

The look on Yami's face made Yuugi's stomach do a back flip out of sheer nerves and trepidation. "I have a better idea," he stated playfully, taking Yuugi by the hands and standing up, drawing Yuugi up off of the couch along with him. "What do you say we go film that final scene?"

Yuugi was about to protest, demanding a response to the feelings he had so boldly displayed; he had really been brave to tell Yami that! Before he could retort, however, a finger to his lips stopped him. "Trust me? It'll be worth it, I promise you."

At the look Yami was giving him, he decided that, yes, whatever Yami had in store for him would be well worth the wait.

And so they emerged from Yuugi's trailer together, Yami coming out first and going to talk with the director. Yuugi summoned up all of his celebrity courage and strode boldly back onto the set, retaking his place at the little table in the fake coffee shop to wait.

Apparently whatever Yami had said to the director had worked because the man simply called for the crew to take their places. He yelled for quiet on the set, and Yuugi couldn't help the little thrill of excitement that ran down his spine. Yami surely wouldn't try anything in front of the cameras, would he? Oh, dear, sweet, heavenly father, that was exactly what Yami had planned to do.

"Action!"

He took a small sip from the coffee cup that had gotten even colder and less appealing since the first attempt at the scene, looking at his watch. Widening his eyes, he set the cup down. "Oh, no," he remarked unhappily, "If I don't get a move on, I'll be late for work!" He let his eyes roam around the café as he said his next lines. "I suppose that's what I get for waiting around here. This café was where I first met him," he said quietly, absently stroking the smooth, wooden surface of the table. His eyes welled up, but he rubbed at them with his knuckle, biting his lip to keep from crying. "No. No more. I can't dwell here anymore."

Right on cue, Yami walked onto the set, appearing as if he had just come in from a wind storm. The tip of his nose was red as if he had been out in the cold for a long time. Yuugi gasped inaudibly. "Ryuuki," he said in a hushed tone.

Hearing it, Yami turned and looked at him in surprise. He absently let a hand come up to touch his purple scarf, watching Yuugi mimic his action with his own red one. "You're still wearing my scarf," Yuugi remarked, letting hope lace his tone. He sounded broken and pathetic, and he felt his eyes misting up again. This time, though, he let them.

"You're still wearing mine," Yami replied harshly, causing Yuugi to flinch and wrap his arms around himself for protection. Yami shook his head as if berating himself, reaching a hand out to brush the side of Yuugi's face. "I'm so sorry, Shindou. I didn't mean for it to come out like that at all." He paused, letting the moment hang in the hair. Yuugi could feel the other's breath ghosting across his face; they were too close. "It's good to see you," Yami finished, dropping his hand to his side.

Yuugi's tone was as cold as an icicle as he made to walk past Yami. "I wish I could say the same, Ryuuki."

Then, Yami stepped straight into his path, causing them to collide. This time, though, Yami wrapped his arms around Yuugi to steady him. He held him there, and Yuugi didn't know what to do except remain frozen in place. So, Yami wanted to improvise now? Gladly.

"I'm so sorry, Shindou. Please, can we talk?" Yami pleaded, hunching his shoulders slightly as he embraced Yuugi.

Yuugi wriggled free from Yami's grasp, shoving his shoulders with just enough force to put some distance between them. He let a blush rise to his cheeks as he delivered his next lines. "How come we only talk when you want to? I've wanted to talk to you for weeks now!"

Yami scrubbed at his face with his hands. "I know, and I'm sorry. Please, Shindou, I'm begging you for this. Could I talk to you for just a minute?"

Yuugi nodded his consent hesitantly. In the back of his mind, he wondered why the director was letting them influence the script so much. Usually, they would have had to stop and redo the scene by now. Of course, he didn't let these thoughts show on his face, nor did he entertain them for more than a split second. He had made that mistake already today, and he wasn't looking to do it again.

Yami visibly relaxed with unsuppressed relief and led Yuugi back over to the secluded table at the far corner of the little café set. They took seats on opposite sides of the table, and Yuugi proceeded to stare resolutely at his coffee cup as he fidgeted with it.

"Baby, please look at me," Yami pleaded in a pained voice.

Yuugi blushed again, eyes narrowing in anger. "You have no right to call me that, and you know it."

Yami looked contrite, and he seemed to be formulating another apology when he all of a sudden seemed to remember that he should at least make a pretense of sticking to his lines. "What did you do to your face?" he asked, referring to Yuugi's black make-up and pasty complexion. He reached out his hand again to brush the pads of his fingers against Yuugi's cheek.

"What's it to you?" Yuugi demanded harshly, flinching from Yami's touch, "You didn't have any qualms about leaving me alone in the middle of the night in the pouring rain, so why care about me at all, Ryuuki?"

"I- never mind," he murmured, casting his eyes downward briefly. It was plain on his face that he was building himself up for something, and Yuugi already knew his costar's lines by heart. The only question was whether or not he'd stick to them. Soon enough, Yami looked back up at him with a fiery determination flaring up in his eyes. "Shindou, I love you with every piece of my heart and soul. Being away from you only made me realize how stupid I was to leave you alone that day. I was worse than wrong; I was cold, cruel, heartless, and positively evil towards you, the man I had promised to love faithfully forever," he recited, staring into Yuugi's eyes with new depth, and Yuugi had a hard time keeping his emotions in check. Then again, he realized, there was no reason for him to. So, as Yami continued to speak his eyes, Yuugi let his tears roll silently down his cheeks as he listened with rapt attention. "Life without you this past few weeks has been colder and lonelier than anything I've ever experienced before. I can't even begin to imagine how it must have been for you, and I know that I have no right to ask you for your forgiveness."

Yuugi kept his hands locked on his cup as he visibly hung on to every word Yami said. The next line would be the final blow, but it wouldn't be enough for his character. That was how this drama would end; that was the way it had been written. It was terribly depressing, but Yuugi supposed it was beautiful in its own way.

"But I know you'll forgive me anyway, Shindou."

Yuugi's eyes went as wide as dinner plates. What had he just said. "Excuse me?" Yuugi asked, his face a mask of pure shock. He let a little indignation creep into his expression, for he supposed that Shindou wouldn't take something like that lying down. "What did you just say to me, Ryuuki?"

"I know you'll forgive me, Shindou," Yami repeated, staring at Yuugi with a smug sort of half smile on his face. "Because you love me just as much as I love you. The sad truth about our relationship is that, no matter what one of us may do to the other, we'll always come back because ours is a love that can't be broken no matter how hard you might try. I tried it, and look where we are now. I've been coming to this café during every moment of free time I have, trying to find you to apologize, and you look like you haven't slept in days."

"Weeks," was Yuugi's quiet reply. He was staring at Yami with a sort of fascination that was as much Shindou's reaction as it was Yuugi's. Yami was an absolute genius when it came to acting, that was no surprise, but this had been the last thing he had expected.

"I know I've said this a lot, but I know that, even after all I've put you through, you'll believe me when I say that you are the single most important person in the entire world to me, and I love you," Yami confessed, leaning over the table and sealing his words with a kiss that made Yuugi's head spin. This was no staged kiss simply for the cameras; this was something hot, passionate, and real that shook Yuugi to his very core, breaking him down and rebuilding him all at once. Yami's mouth pressed against his with need, and Yuugi found himself returning with equal emotion. Their tongues danced around each other, the taste of Yuugi's cold coffee tingeing the kiss with its bitterness. They pulled away sloppily, both appearing too dazed to turn their kiss into anything practiced and skillful. Between attempts to catch his breath, Yuugi said the first thing that came to his mind. "You're right. I'll follow you anywhere."

It took a few seconds before the director realized that they meant to end their scene there. The barked "cut" should have brought Yuugi back to reality as it usually did, but he suspected that he had never really left this time. He was sure the footage would be spectacular because there was so much real emotion and honest reaction contained in that single scene. Never mind that they hadn't really abided by the script. If the director had wanted to, he could have made them stop. With a start, Yuugi realized that he had been jumping to negative conclusions again. The director had obviously known about Yami's decision to take the plot into his own hands; hadn't they talked before Yami had gone to find Yuugi in his trailer? And even after that, surely there had been plenty of time for Yami to sell his idea to the director, hadn't there?

"You're doing it again," Yami remarked casually, licking his lips in a way that made Yuugi's insides feel hot.

"Doing what?" he asked distractedly, too busy watching Yami's tongue glide across his thin yet oh-so-tempting lips to think too much about what question he had been asked.

Yami seemed to be fully aware of this, if his smirk was any indication. "You've gone all quiet on me, which means you must be deep in thought about something."

Before Yuugi could reply, the director appeared in front of them and cleared his throat. "Boys, that was incredible. Really, just some spectacular work," he praised, scratching the back of his head, "Yami, I shouldn't have doubted you when you mentioned your idea. Yuugi, I'm sorry for snapping earlier. You didn't deserve it."

Yuugi nodded. Yami mirrored the action, but he looked smug. After a few more words were exchanged, mostly business things, they were allowed to leave and be done for the day. Technically, Yuugi thought with a frown, they were done forever. This would be the last taping of the drama, and they would only have to attend maybe one more meeting about their contracts before they would all go their separate ways. Except, he realized with a smile, he wasn't so sure that he'd be leaving Yami.

The two walked back to their trailers together, hand in hand. When they eventually parted ways, Yami winked suggestively at him. "I'll meet you in my trailer in ten minutes, Shindou. You and I have some unfinished business."

Yami's tone sent a delightful shiver up Yuugi's spine, and he managed to at least appear casual as he walked up the steps to his trailer. Once the door was shut, however, he launched himself into a frenzy of activity. The first thing to do was to get out of his ridiculous costume; it was so not his style. He shucked the clothes from his body and raced into his bathroom in only his boxers to scrub the make-up from his face. The cleaning left his skin pink and a little raw, so he delicately dabbed on a little lotion and went to pick out some clothes.

The closet in his trailer was mostly full of Shindou's clothes, but Yuugi always kept a few outfits handy if he was going somewhere right after a shoot and didn't have time to make it back to his apartment. He picked out a pair of tight fitted, dark wash jeans and a baggy, dark green knitted top with a scooped neck that contrasted with his milky white skin. A quick dash back into the bathroom for a little swipe of mascara was all he allowed himself before he left for Yami's trailer.

As he was knocking on Yami's door, it occurred to him that maybe he had gotten ready too fast and Yami wasn't even halfway done yet. He frowned at himself for his overly eager response. How dignified. Yet, he only had to wait a few seconds before the door opened to reveal Yami, clad in a similar pair of jeans and a simple white button down dress shirt that he had left open to reveal his toned chest. Yuugi smiled at him as he stepped through the doorway, hearing Yami lock the door behind him.

"As always, Ryuuki," Yuugi commented lightly, turning to face Yami with an expression of mock disapproval on his face, " You've managed to manipulate and weasel your way back into my heart."

"Ahh, but Shindou, my dear," Yami replied smoothly, approaching Yuugi and trailing his hands up the smaller's sides slowly, "I never really left, did I?"

Yami scooped him up into his arms and picked him up, carrying him over to the mini kitchen. He gently set him down on the countertop and positioned himself between his legs. Yuugi was momentarily embarrassed that they were the same after he was elevated like that, but once Yami began to run his hand up his thigh, he forgot all about it. They stared into each other's eyes as Yami used one of his hands to guide Yuugi's head towards his own while the other crept under his shirt. Yuugi hissed with pleasure, nipping at Yami's bottom lip once he was close enough.

They pressed their lips together slowly, savoring every feeling, every taste, every electric sensation that flew between them. Yuugi made a small noise in the back of his throat when Yami slipped his tongue into his mouth, snaking it around his own tongue and starting an odd, fantastic fight that had Yuugi seeing red behind his eyelids. It was better than anything he had ever felt before in his entire life. Then, Yami's slender fingers found one of his nipples and rolled it around experimentally, and Yuugi couldn't help the wanton moan that escaped him. He arched his back eagerly, fisting his hands in Yami's spiky hair. He watched with something akin to fascination as Yami lifted his shirt up to expose his chest, but then his head dipped down to suck and bite at Yuugi's nipple, and his head smacked off of one of the kitchen cabinets as he fought to suppress a cry of pleasure.

Yami's hands and mouth were hot and demanding on his body, and Yuugi thought he could have just died it felt so amazing. He rocked his hips against Yami's, and he felt rather than heard the other man's appreciative groan. Gods, how long did they have to do this? Yuugi hoped forever. He couldn't imagine anything he would rather do than have Yami's pressing against him like this and touching him all over.

Then, Yuugi felt Yami's fingers expertly unclasping the button on his jeans, and he realized that it was about to get ten times better.

* * *

><p>"So, Yuugi," Yami said, rousing Yuugi from a perfectly delightful daydream, "I hate to say this, but I think we have to be out of here soon."<p>

Yuugi picked his head up from Yami's chest, arching his back so that he could look him in the eyes. "No."

Yami quirked an eyebrow at him. He let his hands crawl up Yuugi's back, making him shiver with delight. They stopped at his shoulders, where they pushed Yuugi forward gently until he and Yami were nose to nose. "No? You want the managers to come in here to find us spooning on their couch?"

"Well, I've already stood up to the director today, and look where that got me," Yuugi replied, tilting his head and kissing Yami hotly on the mouth. He dipped his tongue in, quickly ravishing his new lover's mouth before pulling away with a slick popping sound. A strand of spit remained between their red, swollen lips. It broke when Yuugi opened his mouth again to finish his statement. "I think I'll take my chances."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**

There we go! I found this lurking in my old files, and I just had to finish it. I hope you enjoyed it! It's unbeta'd, so it might only be sub par, but I'm hoping the copious amount of face-macking will make up for it! I know how you dears love a good face-macking, after all.

I just loved your brain with smut, so please love mine with reviews?


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